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As climate costs rise, will Colorado follow New York’s “breathing room” playbook?
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Colorado Accountability Project, Approved, Commentary, State

As climate costs rise, will Colorado follow New York’s “breathing room” playbook?

By Cory Gaines | Commentary, Colorado Accountability Project NY’s narrative on “breathing room” for climate mandates here in Colorado? I got the issue of Sarah Montalbano's energy newsletter about a week ago.** In it, Ms. Montalbano details how New York Governor Hochul recently mentioned how that state needs some "breathing room" on its self-imposed climate mandates. This is a site/newsletter dedicated to Colorado issues, so I will leave the rest of her newsletter there, save for one quote which will be relevant for us here. Quoting with links left intact: "Hochul blamed factors such as a 'global pandemic,' and 'some of the highest inflation we had seen in years,' for rattling supply chains, as well as a 'hostile' administration in Washington eli...
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Polis pushes for new prison as critics question Colorado spending priorities
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Colorado Accountability Project, Approved, Commentary, State

Polis pushes for new prison as critics question Colorado spending priorities

By Cory Gaines | Commentary, Colorado Accountability Project Does Colorado need to open (or build) a new prison? Governor Polis’ office seems to think so. Per the Sun article linked at bottom (quoted with links left intact): “Gov. Jared Polis’ office told state lawmakers Wednesday that Colorado must immediately move to open a new prison to handle projected growth in inmate numbers, a revelation that comes as the legislature is cutting social services to address a $1 billion state budget shortfall and despite the General Assembly’s pushback on much smaller funding requests for more beds at existing prisons.” Given what I’d seen before about asking for more beds, I’m betting wanting a whole new prison made some jaws drop alright. I’ll leave it to you to read th...
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HB26-1240: Colorado Democrats Expand Tax Giveaways—and Eat Your TABOR Refund
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Colorado Accountability Project, Approved, Commentary, State

HB26-1240: Colorado Democrats Expand Tax Giveaways—and Eat Your TABOR Refund

Cory Gaines | Commentary, Colorado Accountability Project HB26-1240 (linked first below) is a great example of tax policy which mimics a dynamic I have seen with other policy such as gun control. Rather than taking all in one big shot, something that would get all kinds of undue attention, you take in a piecewise manner. E.g. in year 1 you get red flag laws passed, but they’re limited so as to not cause too much heartburn. When that settles down, you can then spend subsequent years making additions to that first law. In the case of HB26-1240, you start by offering expanded tax credits to people and then you expand the credits further. In order to fully appreciate what I mean, we have to do some background first. Colorado’s Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) is another ...
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What are biodiversity credits, and how are they being used in Colorado?
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Colorado Accountability Project, Approved, Commentary, State

What are biodiversity credits, and how are they being used in Colorado?

Cory Gaines | Commentary, Colorado Accountability Project I watched something on Facebook recently, one of those "I'm going to tell you the truth" kinds of videos. I didn't copy the link. It's not worth referring back to anyway. The gist of the video is simple: the man in the video claims that part of the reason for species reintroduction (he is not from Colorado, nor talking about Colorado) is so that the landowners can make big money selling biodiversity credits. I asked every land conservation trust I could find an email for and, with one exception, could not find one that admitted to selling biodiversity credits. A lot of the ones that emailed me back said that no market for selling them exists as of yet in Colorado. This doesn't mean that the topic has no value; it...
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Colorado’s School Funding TABOR Measure Hides a Long-Term Legislative Slush Fund
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Colorado Accountability Project, Approved, Commentary, State

Colorado’s School Funding TABOR Measure Hides a Long-Term Legislative Slush Fund

Cory Gaines | Commentary, Colorado Accountability Project The CPR article below details how SB26-135 (linked second below), the bill that, among other things, will put a question on the ballot allowing people to decide whether or not to let the state keep tax revenues above the TABOR cap, passed out of its first committee last week. I want to tee up an important thing to note about this bill by using a quote from one of the bill's sponsors Senator Kipp. “The Colorado Constitution requires voter approval to make any adjustments to TABOR, which is why lawmakers have to go to the ballot to advance the plan, according to Democratic Sen. Cathy Kipp, another main sponsor. ‘This bill does exactly what TABOR tells us to do,’ Kipp said. ‘We are going to the people of Colorado and saying, “...
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Colorado’s EMS savings promise: Too soon to celebrate
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Colorado Accountability Project, Approved, Commentary, State

Colorado’s EMS savings promise: Too soon to celebrate

By Cory Gaines | Commentary, Colorado Accountability Project I thought the headline of the KUNC article below was quite provocative. The title is, in full, "Ambulance services would get funding boost while saving Colorado millions under new bill." Bit too certain, I thought. Not so much the first part, but the latter bit: "...while saving Colorado millions." First, to the bill. The KUNC article is linked first below, with the bill underneath it. Screenshots 1a and 1b are the summary of what the bill does from its fiscal note. Skipping a lot of detail the bill allows EMS workers to do more treatments "in place", where and when they are called out or encounter someone needing medical attention in lieu of scooping everyone up and taking them to the ...
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Colorado’s corporate exodus: Nearly 12,000 jobs gone — and the tracker Polis hopes you’ll ignore
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Colorado Accountability Project, Approved, Commentary, State

Colorado’s corporate exodus: Nearly 12,000 jobs gone — and the tracker Polis hopes you’ll ignore

By Cory Gaines | Commentary, Colorado Accountability Project   I found something interesting in Jon Caldara's recent op ed that I thought worth sharing. A quote (with link left intact--though I link to the opportunity tracker separately at bottom so you can share that link if you've a mind to) shows what I mean: "So, what's the pattern here? It's not just 'companies move sometimes.' We're building a list. A tracker. A scoreboard. The Colorado Chamber literally maintains a 'Lost Opportunities' compilation of companies leaving, downsizing, or choosing to expand somewhere else. Nearly 12,000 jobs have moved away. When you need a tracker for corporate departures, you're no longer 'a state with some challenges.' You're a gate agent announcing final boarding for Flight 970 to Anywhere Else." Ye...
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Does affordable housing mean subsidized housing?
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Rocky Mountain Voice, Colorado Accountability Project, Commentary, State

Does affordable housing mean subsidized housing?

By Cory Gaines | Colorado Accountability Project The more I read into what the Democrats running this state think affordable housing ought to mean, and how it ought to get done, the more I’m convinced that what they’d like to do is to equate affordable with (in one way or another) publicly-funded housing. The Sun article linked below offers pretty good evidence. It details a couple of proposals by Democrats. Quoting: “Solutions to Colorado’s lack of affordable housing for teachers and other key staff are slowly taking shape, with one new state program designed to offer an estimated 200 low-interest mortgages to rural educators and district staff. Another potential program, part of legislation that Democrat state Sen. Jeff Bridges plans to introduce this week, would all...
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PUC sunset bill would allow backroom commissioner talks and expand state override of local land use decisions
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Colorado Accountability Project, Approved, Commentary, State

PUC sunset bill would allow backroom commissioner talks and expand state override of local land use decisions

By Cory Gaines | Commentary, Colorado Accountability Project HB26-1326 PUC Sunset Bill There is finally firm policy to share about the Sunset Bill for the Public Utilities Commission. HB26-1326’s bill page is linked first below. I had heard some rumors so it’s good to have some specifics to examine. I wanted to get this out there faster than I had time to digest, so don’t expect more than a quick rundown of the things that I find concerning. I will be watching the bill and hoping to speak against what I’m about to share with you. If you have concerns of your own that you want to share, please speak up. In broad strokes, this bill continues the PUC for a while forward, but (as is their wont) the sponsors couldn’t help tossing in some extra goodies. Some fees go up,...
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When “blight” becomes a tool: How redevelopment labels unlock subsidies and eminent domain
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Colorado Accountability Project, Approved, Commentary, Local

When “blight” becomes a tool: How redevelopment labels unlock subsidies and eminent domain

By Cory Gaines | Commentary, Colorado Accountability Project It’s all blight … if you’re clever enough I had a friend (a Catholic) who once quipped that you can do anything you want in the Catholic church as long as you can find the right priest. I’ve thought about that quote in a variety of contexts because it’s pretty applicable. It certainly is in the Denverite article linked first below. That article details how the Denver Urban Renewal Authority (DURA) will be investigating the potential new location of the new Bronco’s stadium for evidence of blight. Why you ask? A quote from the article details the reason: “The study could mark another significant step in the area’s redevelopment. It could eventually lead to the establishment of an urban re...
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